Three keys to a Cowboys victory and a prediction

Aggravate Alex: Facing a secondary that included a pair of rookies, Alex Smith passed for two touchdowns and no interceptions in leading Kansas City to a 28-2 win at Jacksonville last week. If Dallas is to improve to 2-0 for the first time since 2008, it needs to put the clamps on Smith. But that could be a tall order for a defense that ranks 30th in the NFL after allowing the Giants to amass 478 yards, including six passes of 20 or more yards. “(Giving up) explosive plays is a blueprint of being a bad and losing team,” cornerback Orlando Scandrick said. Since the Cowboys are unlikely to produce six takeaways a second straight week, they’ve got to be sound defensively against a cool veteran quarterback with big-play threats in receiver Dwayne Bowe and running back Jamaal Charles.

No first-quarter follies: The Cowboys haven’t forgotten how they beat the Giants in the opener last season and then traveled to Seattle, where they got flattened by the Seahawks 27-7 after falling into an early 10-0 hole thanks to a fumble on the opening kickoff and a blocked punt. Given that Arrowhead Stadium, like Seattle’s Century Link Field, is one of the NFL’s toughest venues, the Cowboys must maintain their focus early and take the crowd out of the game. “Sometimes those mistakes you make on the road can be exaggerated and become much more difficult to overcome,” coach Jason Garrett said. “That was the case last year in Seattle. It got a crowd that was in a frenzy to begin with even more into a frenzy.”

Free Dez: Garrett was blunt when asked about the constant double-teaming receiver Dez Bryant faced in the opener, when the Giants held him to four catches for 22 yards. “That’s the world he’s going to live in for the rest of his career,” the coach said. The challenge of freeing Bryant falls on offensive coordinator Bill Callahan, who needs to find a way to single him up against Brandon Flowers, a corner with a history of struggling against big, physical receivers. “I promise you, my time is coming,” Bryant said last week. It better be because the Chiefs possess linebackers capable of sticking with tight end Jason Witten, who caught two TDs last week.

Prediction: After spending the past 14 years with the Eagles, the Chiefs’ Andy Reid knows the Cowboys better than any coach in the NFL. Couple that with his young, talented team being determined to shine in its home opener, and you have Reid improving his regular season record against Dallas to 18-11 and Garrett falling back into that .500 feeling he knows so well. CHIEFS 24, COWBOYS 17